Slipping Through The Cracks
by NotFlyingWithOtters
Summary: Time is unraveling, cracks between time lines are expanding. More anomalies are occurring and things are falling through that shouldn't. When a familiar face falls through, the shock waves will affect the grieving team more than they could imagine...
1. Chapter 1

**First Primeval fic, just finished watching EVERY SEASON today xDD Well I hope you enjoy, this is kind of an AU piece I guess, but in order for it to work it has to be pre-season 4, which works. Kind of.**

The ARC was empty now, at three in the morning everyone had gone home, nobody was around and nobody should be around. The machines hummed and clicked, the anomaly detector gently whirring as the motors inside the hard drive worked round the clock, something anybody could never do. Captain Hilary James Becker lay on his back in the centre of the room, his gun to one side of him and his feet crossed at the ankles. The lights overhead were dimmed down to nearly nothing although it still reflected off his hair as he shifted his head slightly in the depths of a fevered dream. His eyes snapped open and he stared up at the ceiling far above him, the sweat cooling on his skin making him shiver slightly. He seemed to find himself in the ARC more than often these days, lying back in the centre of the room and staring up at the ceiling. It settled him most days. But not today. His dreams had been strange and confusing, twisted shapes and colours with an overlaying sense of urgency. Sarah's voice was running through his mind like a constant drumbeat, he couldn't forget it nor push away her screams of terror. His mind flashed backwards in time to the point where the reality merged into his dreams and everything became painfully real.

_Rescue missions. That was how it all started, rescue missions. And they were successful by and by, Danny was recovered and as were Connor and Abby. But the first mission was a complete failure, a lack of communications that made the mission fail. Made Sarah lose her life in the line of duty._

Becker felt his eyes begin to blur again and he pushed his knuckles into his eyes, trying to stay awake and forget the horrors of his dreams, made worse by the scream that never seemed to end. His eyes misted and he pushed himself into a sitting position, his fingers instinctively running over the lines on his gun. There was a brief silence as he stood up and made his way stiffly down to the armoury and slid his gun onto the rack before leaving the ARC completely and venturing outside into the cool January night. The soft wind buffeted him slightly, mussing up his usually impeccable hair a little and cooling him after the feverishness of his sleep. He turned down a darkened street, a flicking streetlight providing the only illumination on it and strode towards his flat, black clothes camouflaging him almost perfectly. He reached his front door and after a few seconds fumbling with his keys he managed to unlock it, pushing it close behind him and then leaning against it, resting his head on the cool varnished wood. Memories were plaguing him again and again and all he wanted to do was run away and hide, hide from his own mind. After a few moments careful deliberation, he moved into his room and lay back on the bed, and quickly sank into sleep.

_Sarah smiled and tossed her dark hair over one shoulder before turning to smile at him, her white teeth glistening in the light of the shimmering anomaly. Becker reached out a hand and gave her the blue nylon rope to clip on her belt so that he could pull her back if the mission showed signs of failing. She clipped it on and then he handed her a compact two-way radio, flicking it on to radio channel 4._

'_Ready?' He asked her with a smile, shouldering his gun again. _

'_I'll be fine. Don't worry about me.' She turned and gave a half-hearted wave before taking the plunge into the abstract twisting lights and suspended crystalline shards. Becker waited for a long while, the anomaly lights reflecting in his eyes, his hand on his gun ready to neutralise any threat that would come through. There was a silence. The other men shifted slightly, the boredom invading their minds as Becker stood his ground, watching the anomaly flicker and shimmer. There was a sudden ear-splitting shriek from beyond the anomaly and Becker grabbed his weapon, diving forwards despite shouts from the men behind. The one shout that did ring in his ears was from a newer recruit on the team._

'_Captain Becker! I will shoot you! Stop!' He kept on running towards the anomaly, ploughing head first into the shimmering light as a bullet sank into his knee. He stumbled but landed on the ground on the other side, blood gushing from the wound._

'_Sarah!' He shouted, his throat hurting and his mind swimming alarmingly as pain invaded his senses. There was an answering cry from his left, quieter, weaker. 'Sarah!' He stumbled to his feet, the world swimming alarmingly and moving beneath his feet. His left knee gave out underneath him and he dropped to the ground, dragging his ruined limb behind him as he made his way towards her. She way lying on the ground, the nylon rope severed and shredded around her still form. He reached her after some painful moments and took her hand gently, wincing is he placed weight on his wounded leg. She squeezed his hand gently and then he noticed the blood on her shirt._

'_Becker…' She coughed weakly, not able to conjure up the effort to smile._

'_Sarah… what happened?' _

'_I don't have much time, Becker. I'm sorry. The mission failed. The future predator got me, I… I'm not going back, am I?'_

'_No Sarah, don't say that, it's not true.' Sarah smiled weakly._

'_Save yourself Becker.' Her voice was getting steadily weaker._

'_I can't. Sarah I can take you back.'_

'_You're wounded, just go. Please. Just go.'_

'_I'm not leaving you alone.' Tears were rolling down his cheeks and he kissed her hand softly, staring into her deep brown eyes._

'_Becker please go… please… I love you.' Tears glistened on her cheeks and then her chest was still. Becker leaned over to touch her hand and then crawled away, blinded by tears. He didn't register that he was back until hands were helping him and someone stripped away the bloody cloth on his leg._

Becker started awake to the sound of his phone ringing and flipped it open, immediately on guard and ready. Connor's voice sounded down the other end of the line.

'Anomaly. We're sending you the co-ordinates now.' Becker was silent for a moment.

'Okay. Do we need backup?'

'I dunno do I? Just… get here.'

**Please enjoy (: And review if you love me/got this far/want cookies etc...**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I know it's been forever and a day and a hundred years since I last posted but I've had writers block for 20 days D: All of this came from 1 day, one day of inspiration has spurred me on. I hope I have no more writer's block for a while. Cause I have a couple other stories to finish, this one to write and coursework to be done. Please enjoy, cause this took all my effort :3**

The grey building was squat and long, hunkering down against the steel colour of the sky and the dying grass around it. Outside, two cars with government registration plates were parked, their bonnets cooling with the harsh wind of the outside. Inside the mostly empty warehouse, a glowing ball of light interspersed with shards glimmered and flickered, casting odd shadows of the people within. The concrete floor was cold and the metal corrugated sides and roof reflected the misty sunlight that filtered through the thick cloud cover. A glimmering ball of light glowed in the centre of the room, shards of a substance like glass hanging in the air. A government-issue car was parked at an angle to the building, steam rising from the hood as the engine cooled in the frigid, icy air. A quick inspection would prove that if you stood beside it you could see, through the partially opened door, a flickering ball of light interjected with shards of glittery substances suspended completely in midair, the shards moving and writhing, sending bright light patterns across the walls.

Connor knelt, his hands on the controls of the device that closed the anomalies, his fingers flying over the appropriate keys and the burst of electricity closing the anomaly into a tight ball. Becker looked over at him and their eyes met for a moment, the soldier and the geek, sharing a look of mutual respect as they realised that their services were needed, and that they needed each other. Becker raised his gun up to shoulder height and aimed it steady, barrel facing the anomaly as it shivered and twisted in the tight ball. A quiet chirping from behind made both the men turn around, snapping to complete attention, eyes focussing on the shadows beyond.

'Sounded like a Raptor.' Connor muttered, his eyes sweeping the shadows beyond Becker as the soldier turned to face the direction of the sound. Becker looked quickly over at him and nodded, raising his gun again and turning it towards the sound.

'Let's hope it's a baby right?' Becker muttered, his tongue flicking over his lips, wetting the dry skin as the cool winter air rushed over them.

'Right.' Connor watched as Becker stepped forwards into the shadows, his shiny hair gleaming in the light of the faded winter sunlight that streamed through the barred windows of the warehouse. Connor fumbled with the switch on his torch and swept the yellowing beam over the walls and floor, around boxes covered in long white dustsheets.

'This is a storage locker?' Connor turned back to Becker and smiled.

'Yeah.' Becker squared his shoulders as Connor finished his sentence. 'Why?'

'More things for the… thing… the hide in.' The sentence was lame and stupid and Becker felt his cheeks flush with a rush of hot, venous blood. Connor flashed him a quick smile and them turned his gaze back at the shadows in front of them. A soft click issued from them again and they both froze, blood running cold in their veins.

'Raptor.' Connor whispered, his breath catching. Becker raised the gun as the creature leaped from the shadows, the inch long claw raised high as it landed on the soldier's chest, the bullet proof vest absorbing most of the impact but gathering several severe score marks down the front as the surprisingly light animal pushed him to the floor. Becker let out a hoarse cry and Connor jumped backwards, his back slamming against the metal walls of the warehouse with a resounding clang which made the animal turn it's pointed head towards him. The yellow eye fixed him with a steely glare and leapt off Becker, stalking cautiously towards Connor, the claw clicking on the concrete floor. Becker rolled over, his chest stinging as he breathed, a slow trickle of blood running down by his ribs as his breath sawed in his chest.

Connor saw Becker roll over and aim and leaped to one side as the tranquilliser dart flew through the air and burrowed itself in the velociraptor's thigh. The animal let out a loud squeal of pain and terror and turned the light body quickly towards Becker again. Connor crossed his fingers and closed his brown eyes as the raptor made its way towards the young military man. There was a pregnant, ominous silence and then Connor opened his eyes. The raptor was lying on its side; eyes glazed and partly closed, the chest moving swiftly up and down as the animal struggled for breath.

'Becker!' Connor couldn't keep the terror out of his voice as he ran to his colleague lying immobile on the floor. 'Becker man, are you okay?' Becker rolled over and stared at Connor, breathing heavily, each breath causing pain to flicker over his face. Becker moved himself over to Connor and smiled, his eyes slitted against the light.

'Yeah. Just a scratch.' Connor looked over Becker's ruined Kevlar vest and the white padding spilling out over the floor and Becker's chest.

'Doesn't look like a scratch.' Connor muttered apprehensively, helping Becker out of the protective vest. Becker smiled and placed his gun on the floor, pulling up his shirt and inspecting his wound. The blood was already clotting and the skin, although red and raw, was not broken too much, just a few trickles of blood running down his sculpted stomach.

'It's fine.' Becker bent down, his face contorting in pain and picked his gun up. Indicating the raptor lying prone on the floor, Becker raised his eyebrows and stepped back slightly before speaking. 'What do we do with it?' Connor did a double take for a moment and then logically reasoned through his ideas.

'Well logically we could just throw it back. Well not literally, obviously, but just put it on the other side of the anomaly and close it again.' Becker paused, shifting his weight from foot to foot before poking the reptile on the shoulder with the barrel of his gun. Connor squatted down on his haunches and watched the animal breathe, a sudden breath escaping the raptor into his face. He wrinkled his brow and coughed slightly, waving a hand to try and diffuse the smell of rotting meat.

'So throw it back. Like an unsatisfactory fish?' Connor laughed at the idea of Becker fishing and then snapped back into focus.

'There's no reason why not.' Becker nodded and bent down, one hand sliding over the surprisingly warm, pebbled skin of the dinosaur, the rising ribcage with each breath pushing against the force his hand was exerting

'How do we move it?' Becker looked around, a few stray strands of hair hanging over hi forehead and glinting in the light. Connor cast his gaze over the room and felt his eye being caught by a glint of silver and a dull shape, like that of a flatbed trolley.

'In that.' Connor walked over to it and removed it, a couple of light boxes wobbling precariously as he rolled it away. Becker stepped forward and lifted the boxes despite the pain in his chest from the cut that released a fresh wave of discomfort every time he breathed. The raptor was relatively light compared to size and within a few moments of lifting it was on the trolley and Connor had his hands on the device that reopened the anomaly, his fingers flashing over the keys so fast he wasn't even looking at them. There was a beam of electricity and then the anomaly split into the ever moving, constant stream of angular glassy shapes that were suspended in midair, twisting and dancing in and out of the ball of light.

'Ready?' Becker asked, shouldering his gun and making Connor take the bar on the front of the trolley. They both sized it up and then walked towards the light, the curious sensation of walking through a wall of water washing over them as they passed through and into the Cretaceous. The velociraptor snorted in its sleep and moved slightly, the hind leg twitching and the claw curving in the air.

'We need to get out of here.' The soil beneath their feet was spongy and dark, the air humid and more oxygenated that made their breathing difficult. Together they removed the raptor from the trolley and pilled it back, heading towards the anomaly at a fast pace. They once again burst through the sheen of light and waterfall sensation, the warehouse concrete dull and boring in comparison to where they'd just gone. Connor went to switch the anomaly back into hold when it sent out a wave of light a figure emerged. Becker raised his gun but a voice cut through.

'Put it down, Becker, you'll kill someone.' Connor felt his stomach do a slow and lazy back flip as the stab of recognition pulsed through him. It couldn't be… could it? It wasn't possible…

'Cutter?'

**Oooohhh cliffhanger ;P**

Review pleaaaaaaaaaaaaase (:


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I know it's been forever and a day and a hundred years since I last posted but I've had writers block for 20 days D: All of this came from 1 day, one day of inspiration has spurred me on. I hope I have no more writer's block for a while. Cause I have a couple other stories to finish, this one to write and coursework to be done. Please enjoy, cause this took all my effort :3 (Same disclaimer as last time, I know)  
**

The silence stretched, tenuous and unbroken, tremulously vibrating, nearly deafening the people in the warehouse leaning against the wall, knees weak in disbelief. Connor closed his eyes for a moment, trying to separate strands of his thoughts into something tangible, something he was able to rationalise in his mind within a few seconds. Becker looked over at him, his eyes widening slightly at the Scottish drawl coming from in front of the anomaly from the featureless silhouette. Connor looked over at Becker and their eyes locked, a single line of connection between the two of them as the figure moved towards them, coming out of the shadow so they could see his face.

'Connor. It's me.' Connor felt his knees weaken and he pushed all of his bodyweight against the metal walls, desperately trying to stay upright and not swoon like a girl. Becker shouldered his gun and pointed it at the professor as he moved closer. Connor waved a hand at Becker and he lowered the gun, a quizzical look on his young face. Confidently, Connor stepped forwards and cast a cursory glance over Cutter. Everything was, as it seemed. The blue eyes burned out from his face, the mop of dirty blond hair tangled, though shorter than what Connor remembered from the Cutter he had pulled from the burning ARC.

'No, no it can't be. I saw you die! You died in my arms!' Connor felt his will flagging and stepped backwards, his voice trembling in disbelief. 'It can't be you!' Cutter moved forwards and placed his reassuringly solid hand on Connor's arm.

'I know it's strange. I don't understand what happened. I just know I'm back, somehow. Back from the dead, possibly. I just came back.' Connor placed his hand over Cutter's and held tightly to it.

'Don't go again.' Cutter shook his head.

'I didn't mean to go before.' Becker stepped forwards and surveyed Cutter coolly, eyes flicking over the dirty blond hair; the smudged dirt on Cutter's face, and the few cuts across his arms and then lowered his weapon.

'Professor Cutter.' Becker's voice was shaking. 'Welcome back.' Cutter looked over at him and left go of Connor's arm, any tenderness in the moment gone.

'Thank you, captain Becker.' Both men seemed unsure what to do, then Cutter held out his hand and Becker shook it, both of them gripping a little too firmly, as if neither wanted to publicly display their relief, but they did care. Becker released his hand and saluted smartly, boots clicking together, eyes facing forward and his back straight. Connor reached in his pocket for his phone and quickly dialled the number for the ARC; knowing that even at half five in the morning, someone would be there. To his possible pleasure he discovered that someone was Lester and quickly tried to figure out the words to describe what had happened.

'Hurry along, Connor, I don't have all day.' Came the bored voice on the other end and Connor nearly slammed the phone down before finding the words.

'Lester, this is really difficult to explain, but… we're coming back to the ARC with a visitor.' There was a brief silence and then a bored reply:

'As long as it's not another creature likely to destroy my office.' Lester clicked off the phone and Connor placed his phone back into his pocket before turning his attention back to Cutter, who was standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, the anomaly throwing him into stark relief. He looked pale and gaunt, not the lively and vibrant character that Connor had watched die in his arms, his life's blood flowing away onto the concrete floor as the world crumbled away around them. Becker touched Connor's arm, startling him out of his quiet reverie of reminiscing.

'Huh?' Connor jumped, the muscles in his shoulders spasming as Becker touched him lightly.

'We're going.'

**oOo**

Connor walked numbly along the corridor of the ARC, passing people he knew but neither acknowledging them nor even seeing them properly. Abby looked over at him from her workstation with a smile and walked towards him when he didn't respond, running a hand through her short bleached hair. She touched his arm and he jolted, suddenly noticing where he was and what he was doing. He pulled her roughly into a hug and she noticed his pale, wan face, kissing his cheek softly.

'What's wrong?' He shook her off, his face pale as footsteps echoed down the corridor behind him. Abby sensed this change and surreptitiously slipped her hand around his, squeezing tightly, her nails digging slight grooves into his palms. 'Connor?' He shook his head but held tightly to her hand, his knuckles white and his entire body quaking.

'Abby… I don't really know what to say… I mean…' She pressed his arm gently.

'Good or bad?' She whispered, her breath tickling his cheek gently as her words found their way into his ears.

'Both.' Connor squeezed tightly on her hand as Cutter came into view and she froze, Connor felt her muscles lock and a shiver run through her, her voice was barely more than a whisper.

'Cutter…' Cutter froze, as though he'd heard her and turned his head towards the sound of her voice. Their eyes met and Connor felt Abby tug at his hand, freeing herself. Abby moved in a dreamlike state and Connor just stood, blankly staring. Abby broke into a run and flung herself into Cutter's arms, holding his warm, reassuringly firm body close to hers, listening to his heartbeat thudding loudly in his chest. 'How?' Abby breathed, stepping backwards and into Connor's tight embrace.

'I… don't know.' Cutter replied, his words laboured. Abby and Connor looked at one another; cast a quick glance at Cutter and strode briskly off. They reached the locker room and turned to one another.

'Has anyone told Jenny?' Abby asked him quickly, running a hand through her spiky hair and looking over at him.

'No. It wasn't the first thing on my mind.' Abby smiled sympathetically and grabbed his hand before the wailing of a siren howled through the air and cut through their thoughts. Connor looked puzzled. 'That has to be wrong… that's the twelfth this week.' Abby, who had also been keeping count frowned as another siren, different to the one before went off.

'What's happening?'

**Another cliffhanger, my bad! Sorry. I will do my best to update **


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